jeffw@sc47
Well Known Member
This relates to using water, air, or fuel for a fuel tank leak test and some of the points of view I've come across in VAF lately. I had seen a post that a fuel molecule was much smaller than a water molecule and therefore if water did not find a leak, when later filled with fuel you may end up finding one. So I poked around a little.
I'm not a chemist but after spending a while getting 'google' educated on the size or volume of molecules, I am starting this conversation. One page I found was: http://www.chemteam.info/Chem-History/Loschmidt-1865.html
I also talked to two chemical engineers I know and got their opinions/input. What I understood from them, was that a complex carbon molecule such as gasoline was larger than both an air molecule or a water molecule.
Below, a portion of the table in web page address (above) regarding the specific volumes of molecules:
Observed Volume of
Molecules at 0 Celcius
Water H2O 18.0
Octane C8H18 159.7
Showing that a water molecule is significantly smaller in volume than fuel type molecules. In this web page there was discussion about how the interstitial spaces between atoms varies, and viscosity was also mentioned. So, it is apparent that there are more than a few factors that might be considered that may affect how different fuel tank testing materials work.
The diameter of an air molecule: s=8 x 0.000866 x 0.000140 = 0.000000969 mm or in round numbers one millionth of a millimeter. There was no comparison that I could see that provided the diameter in mm for the fuel or water molecules.
I'm sure that there are VAF members who are chemists and can weigh in on this much better than I can. And, who may provide opinions on the appropriateness of varying testing materials to fill tanks with and their ability to find their way through small leak points in a fuel tank assembly.
I'm not a chemist but after spending a while getting 'google' educated on the size or volume of molecules, I am starting this conversation. One page I found was: http://www.chemteam.info/Chem-History/Loschmidt-1865.html
I also talked to two chemical engineers I know and got their opinions/input. What I understood from them, was that a complex carbon molecule such as gasoline was larger than both an air molecule or a water molecule.
Below, a portion of the table in web page address (above) regarding the specific volumes of molecules:
Observed Volume of
Molecules at 0 Celcius
Water H2O 18.0
Octane C8H18 159.7
Showing that a water molecule is significantly smaller in volume than fuel type molecules. In this web page there was discussion about how the interstitial spaces between atoms varies, and viscosity was also mentioned. So, it is apparent that there are more than a few factors that might be considered that may affect how different fuel tank testing materials work.
The diameter of an air molecule: s=8 x 0.000866 x 0.000140 = 0.000000969 mm or in round numbers one millionth of a millimeter. There was no comparison that I could see that provided the diameter in mm for the fuel or water molecules.
I'm sure that there are VAF members who are chemists and can weigh in on this much better than I can. And, who may provide opinions on the appropriateness of varying testing materials to fill tanks with and their ability to find their way through small leak points in a fuel tank assembly.
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